Revolution Stadium Groundbreaking "12-24 months" Part XVII

The stadium would be a boon to Assembly Row. All those restaurants and bars there would stand to benefit from games and events at an Everett stadium. In fact, I think it would be a huge benefit. It would make that area an even more attractive place to live. Somerville should want this as much as Everett.

 

I think I find the traffic and transit arguments so amusing because it isn't like the roads, trains and subway systems aren't already a complete disaster. Seriously, how much worse would a stadium in Everett make traffic in and around the city? There are already like 5 million people living in Greater Boston. A shitload of people commute in and out and around the region every day. There are already a ton of points of interests in and around the city - sports, concerts, entertainment and otherwise - that bring people in and out of the city every day, year round. Yes, it will have an increased impact around all scheduled events, but is that impact suddenly going to make people think "you know, if it weren't for that damn stadium in Everett, getting around Boston would be a piece of cake."?

The city and state governments need to make major improvements to all of the ways in and out of Boston whether a Revolution stadium gets built or not. And if this stadium actually did come to fruition, infrastructure investments would have to be part of the conversation. The Krafts already know they are going to have to foot the bill for every cent of the construction of this whole project, and they know they will need to have some kind of method for paying back the taxpayers for any infrastructure fixes that are directly related to the stadium's construction.

Could this conversation have been less "behind closed doors" and involved more stakeholders? Probably. At the same time, this Everett endeavor has been going on for several years now and it hasn't exactly been a closely guarded state secret. And I'll say it again - the only thing the provision in the bill does is allow for a change in the port designation - with a time limit - to get the process moving into the next phase, with no guarantee that it actually proceeds until more steps are taken.

This is classic big business and big government clashing over greasing the wheels. The politicians and the fat cats don't give a damn what is best for people or what people want (even if they did, the people would endlessly squabble over whether a stadium project like this was needed or wanted). They just want to do whatever is going to fill their pockets and enhance their power and influence.

I want it to happen for purely selfish reasons. I want to see the Revs in a stadium that is the right size for them, playing on a grass field, "in the city" to increase the teams exposure and hopefully help the team become more of a draw for on-roster star power and attention in the public eye. And I want it even though it would become considerably more expensive and less convenient for me to attend games. At the same time, this never-ending 12-24 months has grown incredibly tiresome. At this point, the Kraft family either needs to bend over and kiss whatever rings it needs to in order to get this thing over the line OR they need to say the hell with it and do whatever they have to do (be a team that has a Messi-esque star on its roster, run the trains to every game, etc.) to draw 40,000-plus to Gillette for every game.

 

That's most of a half hour walk.

Aside from Mikes, McDonalds, Peruvian Taste, and the beer garden at the Casino, there's nothing of interest in that neighborhood right now.

A water taxi might make it interesting, but that's not going to move the needle much for the traffic that Assembly normally gets.

 

2006 - Parcel 3 in Roxbury
2007 into 2008 - Inner Belt / Brickbottom in Somerville
2012 - Assembly Square in Somerville
2012 - Wonderland Greyhound Track in Revere
2014 into 2015 - Widett Circle / South Boston - South End border area
2016 - Bayside Exposition Center site in Dorchester
2023 into 2024 - Alford Street site in Everett

Four independent municipalities, five different mayors, and seven separate sites that I can remember over the past 18 years... but the names of the pair of owners proposing construction of the stadium and the team executive tasked with advancing it have remained constant.

So, while there's no questioning that navigating the byzantine political processes of Greater Boston municipalities and the Commonwealth of Massachusetts can be frustratingly difficult, at what point is it fair to ask whether the development team of Kraft, Kraft and Bilello is the stumbling block?

Look, the quest to get a soccer-specific stadium built for the New England Revolution has undoubtedly included unforeseen circumstances cropping up, calculated machinations on the part of government officials, and missteps on the part of the Krafts and their Revolution management team. All of that said, the unforeseen happens and the nature of Bay State politics isn't changing anytime soon. So, a couple of things seem clear from where I'm sitting: It is time for Robert and Jonathan to get their s**t together... and part of that process means showing Bilello the door.

Brian Bilello is, in a word, "serviceable". He's loyal, runs interference well, takes copious notes at league meetings, and keeps the t-shirts stocked. Seriously, based upon his track record, he's... adequate. Which isn't going to win your team an MLS Cup or build it a soccer-specific stadium. Unfortunately, in order for the New England Revolution to become truly relevant on the Boston / New England sports landscape, they have to accomplish one, if not both, of those things. Bilello has to go.

Following that move, the Krafts need to realize that they are not going to rewrite the rules of Greater Boston / Commonwealth of Massachusetts political gamesmanship. They're just not. Building Gillette Stadium on their own dime didn't rewrite the rules. Winning six Super Bowls didn't rewrite the rules. Years of philanthropy didn't rewrite the rules. All of those things simply earned them a seat at the table where... well, where they get to "play the game" by "the rules". They need to realize said fact and began to operate accordingly. The Krafts need to bend the knee, kiss some rings, and grease some palms.

Even then, there are no guarantees that they're going to get what they want. The Krafts aren't exactly dealing from a position of strength. What's their leverage? They're not selling or moving the Patriots - a beloved team that, nevertheless, seems poised to enter what could be a prolonged rebuild - and every elected official, government functionary, and private industry powerbroker in Massachusetts knows it. They could threaten to sell or move the Revolution, but - the population of this community aside - the reaction of most of Massachusetts and New England residents would be a collective shrug.

Further, Bob's dealing with PR baggage that didn't exist when this quest began nearly two decades ago. The days when he was the savvy businessman in his early 50s driven by the dream of acquiring the NFL team that he and his sons once cheered on as season ticket-holders are a distant memory. He's no longer making the rounds of charitable events arm-in-arm with Myra, his college sweetheart who became his philanthropist wife, a figure much-beloved by the public. Today, Robert Kraft is an octogenarian married to a woman young enough to be his daughter... which is a better look than the widower who began squiring around an even younger paramour a year after his wife died... which is a much better look than the billionaire widower getting $59 handjobs at a strip-mall spa in Jupiter, Florida.

As for Jonathan, he doesn't possess his father's approachability, charm, or common touch. He's not someone you'd describe as gregarious or affectionate. Jonathan comes across as more buttoned down, distant, calculating. He's not somebody who is going to "win over the room".

I could be wrong, but I don't think the quest for a soccer-specific home for the Revolution gets any easier moving forward unless there's a sea-change in the manner in which the Krafts elect to go about achieving said goal. It will be interesting to see if they're willing to consider such a paradigm shift, let alone embracing it and seeing it through to a successful result.

 

The House Majority Leader and the Chairman of the House Ways and Means Committee both represent Boston and are allies of Mayor Wu. Without them, Kraft gets nothing.

 

I don't conpletely disagree with the responses to my previous statement. However, for the sake of clarity because I was half ranting and half didn't want to write an essay, but since everyone else is writing books ...

Boston and Somerville have had multiple opportunities to make a deal. As Brian listed out, a deal couldn't be made, whether that was the city or the Kraft's or a combination based on each individual opportunity doesn't really matter, the end result was no stadium, Everett has some land that isn't used, is very polluted, and has an agreement at the moment that aligns with Everett and the Krafts.

As pointed out in multiple sources, this particular bill was simply to remove the port designation so the next steps of the process could proceed. This isn't a green light for stadium construction to begin. What this would allow is more formal and detailed designs, public meetings to discuss traffic plans, parking plans, work with the cities and state to build the footbridge that's been on definite hold, finalize the silver line route etc. Any of those issues are entirely able to stop the project after this current hold up.

Boston, Somerville and Cambridge have been pretty aggressive about increasing public transportation usage, bikes and walking over the past several years. So I find it somewhat ironic that a stadium plan with no parking is being shouted down because there isn't a way to get the cars that they don't want to the stadium. Again, the exact issues that should be brought up in the public meetings, etc that would be in line to progress after the passage of this.

A significant benefit is that Everett has someone willing to pay for the cleanup of the polluted site. if the stadium doesn't happen, I am sure this will eventually be resolved, either by another builder cleaning it up or the Fed/state/city paying for it to make it usable, but who knows how long before that happens or who is going to end up paying for it, but you are passing on someone who is currently planning to do that without tax dollars. Plus, it's dead center in a pretty industrial area so you aren't dumping a stadium right in the middle of a neighborhood.

Revisiting traffic/parking, it's about a mile from Sullivan to Encore so even though the Stadium will be closer, using that distance is likely a 15-25 minute walk for most people. If you go with .7 miles, it's not that much different than the lots on the other side of Rt 1 in Foxboro to the stadium entrances after you wind back and forth and trek through Patriot's Place. Assembly would be further though it certainly has better pre/post game amenities already in place and I believe that is where the current footbridge is planned for. If that walk is too far, I don't see a huge influx of rogue parkers in Charlestown or Somerville though I do understand the concern. I also know that I have been ticketed in Charlestown less than 5 minutes after the meter expired across from the high school, so they understand that process already.

I would expect about 60% of the games would occur on the same night as Bruins, Celtics, or Red Sox. Red Sox might affect the highways, but otherwise little interference. Celtics/Bruins would likely make for some competition in the Garden/Haymarket parking facilities. I wouldn't doubt Henry is against this because of Fenway Concerts and his wife being an NWSL partner. Jacobs likely would be fine if his company gets the concessions.

My opinion is Wu doesn't want the NWSL stadium upstaged by the Revs. Despite almost every concern her allies are throwing out about the Revs situation being worse for White Stadium even though it is 1/3 the size and the only stadium project in Boston I can recall to be funded with tax dollars (Boston not Massachusetts). Negotiations and compromises are all part of the game, I get that. I am not a fan of how Beacon Hill politics has developed over the years, that's another topic for an entirely different place. But I do think it's unfair to not give Everett the opportunity to pursue this to a point where better information is available, that might be what provides a totally different opportunity that takes place instead of the stadium for that location.

TL;DR: it would be way less aggravation and money for Kraft to just stay in Foxborough

 

As I said, this goes back to the Krafts - particularly, Jonathan - still feeling stung over the lack of support they received for their 1996 plan to build a stadium for the Patriots in South Boston. When their objective of building a soccer-specific home for the Revolution at the Bayside Exposition Center site went belly up in 2017, that exacerbated the disconnect with both City of Boston officials and any members of the Massachusetts legislature perceived as being aligned with the Hub's interests.

Add to this the fact that the Town of Foxborough is so loath to lose the pro sports team that's defined it for going on 54 years that the Krafts are treated with kid gloves in said community and you have a situation where Bob and Jonathan are digging in their heels.

And that's on top of the fact that everything I've read and heard over the years indicates that Jonathan is one to catalogue slights, real or perceived, against his family and their interests.

This could get ugly.

 

I don't necessarily accept that concerns by Boston and/or Somerville prevented this from passing in the end of session. I think it has more to the ineptitude of the legislature - hemming and hawing till the midnight hour, then finding out that the negotiations were more involved and were going to take more than some late-night wrestling to resolve.

There were a bunch of things that were supposed to get passed and didn't - the stadium issue was just one thing that didn't get resolved.

 

After almost thirty years the Rev have carved out a small group of fans, but have still failed to be granted a seat at the table with the Red Sox, Celtics, and Bruins. We have to face the fact that the vast majority of "sports fans" in New England don't give a rat's rectum about soccer in general, and the Revolution in particular. If the Revolution were to up stakes and move to a more salubrious clime, like San Antonio, the local outcry here wouldn't be audible in Worcester. For the Revolution the Krafts have zero political or social influence. By now it should be clear to all but the most delusional that the Revolution will play their first match in a Boston area stadium of their own twelve hours before the heat death of the universe.

 

Agreed. The Revs released a statement saying they were disappointed the topic of the stadium wasn't taken up on its own. It would be rather shocking if they said this if they didn't think they had the support to begin with. But I guess crazier things have happened.

 

Listening to WBUR right now and Joe Battenfeld, of the Herald, is a guest and he's saying that the House is actively blocking the Everett project because they are doing Wu's bidding. He says it's clear to him that it's a revenge move on Wu's part because of the Josh Kraft experimentation with running for Mayor of Boston. I'm learning how much Wu plays political hardball.

 

Enjoyed your take but I have to comment on a couple of things... As for the Rev's leaving the Boston/New England market, MLS definitely does not want that to happen. I've even heard Garber say this.

As for people not giving a rat's rectum, true dat, but they are the dusty, hoary traditional "Big four sports fans". They are the Felger and Mazz cranks and they are not getting any younger. The younger sprites do give a rat's rectum and they give a lot. I see them at games and I've seen their disinterested parents, allergic to footy, who are only there because they've taken their kids there. You can spot them because the kids have all the Rev's swag on but they are sporting Pats, Swox, C's and B's gear. Times they are a' changin'.

 

If that's the case, Dad should tell Josh to find another hobby. He's going to get crushed anyway.

 

Even so, the House has effectively bumped this car right off the track and into a ditch. It's clear that even if Maura Healy wants them to meet informally on this, it's D.O.A.. So, we can definitely add two years minimum to this timeline if the Everett project is still to be pursued. I say it's pretty clear now that it's never going to float and that the Kraft's are best off building their Palace de Foote right on good o'le Rt.1, in the good o'le borough of foxes.

 

Josh Kraft can drop out just as easily as he dropped in to speculation about running for mayor. I agree that he would get crushed. I know I was pessimistic when the current bill didn't move a few weeks back but it seems to me that the reported roadblocks can be negotiated away if the various parties are willing.